Parliamentary Secretary for Information and Broadcasting Barrister Danyal Chaudhary called for increased investment in children in the 2026–27 federal budget, warning that despite children making up more than 40 per cent of Pakistan’s population, their needs continue to receive insufficient priority in federal and provincial allocations.
Barrister Danyal urges higher child investment in budget 2026–27
ISLAMABAD, Mar 09 (APP): Parliamentary Secretary for Information and Broadcasting Barrister Danyal Chaudhary called for increased investment in children in the 2026–27 federal budget, warning that despite children making up more than 40 per cent of Pakistan’s population, their needs continue to receive insufficient priority in federal and provincial allocations.
He made these remarks while addressing a pre-budget conference organised jointly by UNICEF, the SDGs Secretariat Pakistan and the Sustainable Development Policy Institute in Islamabad.
Highlighting budget trends, Barrister Danyal noted that while the allocation for the Benazir Income Support Programme in the 2025–26 budget was increased by 20.7 per cent, spending on education saw only a marginal rise, while the health budget declined from Rs 52.13 billion to Rs 31.97 billion.
He expressed concern that only 10 per cent of health spending was directed towards primary healthcare, with the remaining 90 per cent spent on other services.
“This reduction directly affects maternal and newborn health services,” he said, stressing that basic healthcare must remain a national priority.
Citing global benchmarks, the parliamentary secretary said Pakistan currently spends only 0.9 per cent of its GDP on health, far below the 5 per cent recommended by the World Health Organization.
Similarly, he noted that education spending remains significantly lower than the 4–6 per cent of GDP recommended by UNESCO.
He warned that failure to meet these standards has serious consequences, pointing out that 77 per cent of 10 year old children in Pakistan are unable to read basic texts, while one in three children suffers from stunted growth due to malnutrition.
Participants at the conference, including parliamentarians and policy experts, agreed that the 2026–27 budget must reverse these trends.
They stressed the need for better utilisation of available resources and called for effective strategies to ensure timely spending of unutilised development funds.
Barrister Chaudhry reaffirmed that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Pakistan would ensure transparent communication of budget-related information to the public to enhance awareness and participation in the budget-making process.
He added that parliament could play a critical role in monitoring investments aimed at improving the well-being of children across the country.
